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Hydrogen Fuel

Hydrogen Fuel

Hydrogen fuel is an alternative fuel found either in gas or liquid form as pure hydrogen. It can be used in fuel cells to power electric motors or burned to power internal combustion engines. The most common application of hydrogen fuel is in the automobile and rocket industries.

In electric motors, hydrogen is used to power small devices known as fuel cells, which create electricity via chemical reactions. Hydrogen fuel cells convert the ion flow obtained from combining hydrogen and oxygen into water into electrical energy. When stacked in large numbers, hydrogen fuel cells can produce great amounts of wattage.

Since hydrogen is the simplest, lightest element in the universe, it produces little to no emissions and is a highly efficient fuel source. It's also the most abundant element on Earth, but it still faces many challenges toward mass production. It is rarely found in its pure form, and is costly to isolate and store as a fuel. Hydrogen fuel is thus expensive, limiting its current availability for consumers. While hydrogen fuel remains in its nascent stages, it shows promise as a future alternative energy source. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)